Little Alice in Wonderland
by nineteennintytwo
Summary: There are stories where Alice stays after her second visit. But what would have happened if she had stayed after her FIRST visit, instead? Join Alice as she grows up in Underland with the Hatter guiding her. STORY UP FOR ADOPTION.
1. Down the Hole

So this is just an idea I've had for a while now. It was originally just going to be Alice's first adventure in Wonderland, since I assume that it was a mix of the original book and the cartoon. But then I wondered what would have happened if Alice hadn't returned home and grew up in Wonderland. So this story is now both. The first adventure will be about nine chapters long, and the rest will be her growing up until the Frabjous Day.

Please tell me what you think of the story (don't just add it to favourites and alerts and not review), and I hope you all like the first chapter!

* * *

Down The Hole

It was a lovely summer afternoon, and Alice was sitting under a tree with her sister, stroking Dinah who was seated upon her lap. Her sixteen-year-old elder sister, Margaret, was trying to teach her History, but Alice couldn't have been less interested.

"Alice, please pay attention," Margaret told her.

"But it's boring," Alice replied. "The day is much too splendid for lessons, and that History book doesn't even have any pictures in it. And what is the use of a book without pictures?"

Margaret sighed and turned back to the book, and losing interest almost immediately, Alice began to make a daisy chain, and her mind drifted off into a day dream.

"Well, if I ever had a world of my own, it shall all be nonsense," she spoke to herself. "There will be no lessons, no stockings and no grown-ups telling me what to do. It shall all make no sense at all and everyone would be mad. Nothing shall be what it is, because everything will be what it isn't."

At that moment, a large White Rabbit in a waistcoat hurried on by. Alice did not think much of it at first, but suddenly realizing that she had never seen a rabbit in a waistcoat before, she did a double take and hopped to her feet.

"Oh dear! I'm late!" the Rabbit cried to himself, taking out his pocket watch and looking at it.

Alice blinked in surprise. He had a waistcoat _and_ a pocket watch? This certainly was strange. The White Rabbit put away his pocket watch and hurried on, and as curious as a cat, Alice followed, with Dinah padding along behind. Lord Ascot's estate was a very large one, and Alice was led through the maze, past bushes, and finally out into a large meadow. The White Rabbit disappeared behind an old tree.

"Mr Rabbit! Wait!" Alice cried after him.

She rounded the corner and came across a large rabbit hole, which she crouched down in front of and peeked in.

"Hello?" she called. "Mr Rabbit?"

She leaned further in, and all of a sudden, a clog of dirt fell away and Alice found herself falling. She screamed in fright, but stopped short when she noticed all sorts of things falling past her. Cupboards, bookshelves, a piano, pictures, chairs; all of which Alice would never expect to find in a rabbit hole. She was able to snatch a jar from one of the shelves, and on it, was a label which said _orange marmalade_. All the odd bits and bobs were enough to distract Alice from her fall for most of the time.

That is, until she crashed through something and landed flat on her front. She tried picking herself up, only to find that she had in fact, landed _upside down_, and so, fell back down again. She began to sob.

"Alice! Stop it!" she scolded herself. "This is not the time for tears!"

She was able to sniff the tears away and forget about crying, the place where she had landed being a good enough distraction.

"Curiouser and curiouser," she said to herself.

She had landed in a round hall, with all sorts of different doors around her. Most of them were large, but there was one which was actually very small. Alice decided to try the large doors first. She tried opening every one, but they were all locked.

"What is the use of having so many doors if they cannot be opened?" Alice said.

She looked around her for something that might help, and to her surprise, saw a small glass table standing in the centre of the room.

"Odd," she said. "I'm sure that was never there before."

Alice walked over to it and found a small golden key on top of it. So she tried using it to open the doors, but the locks were either too big or the key too small. Sighing, she walked over to the small door and stuck the key in the lock, and was relieved that this door opened. But Alice was simply too big to fit through it. She turned back to the table, and to her surprise, found a small bottle sitting on it.

"Even more odd," she spoke. "I am sure that had never been there before, either!"

She walked over to the table, and placing the key back on it, she picked up the bottle. _Drink me_, it read. Knowing that she had nothing else to do, Alice took a small sip. And all of a sudden, she shrunk! Clothes and all!

"How strange!" she exclaimed. "Well, at least I am now small enough to fit through the door."

She hurried back over to it, but to her horror, found that it was locked again! And she had left the key on the table!

"Well, that's useful!" she scowled, before trying to jump up and reach for the key.

But she was too small. Alice sat down in a huff, before something else caught her attention. It was a small box, and when Alice opened it, she found a small cake inside with the icing spelling the words _Eat me_.

"Well, it will be useful if it makes me grow," Alice thought. "Then I can reach the key."

So she took a small nibble, and then another. And almost immediately, she shot upwards! Up to her right height, but she didn't stop there. She kept on growing and growing, until her head hit the ceiling!

"Next time, I will not eat so much," she made a mental note to herself. "But now that I am this big, how should I ever fit through the door now?"

Being only six, Alice sat down and began to cry, her tears creating a large puddle.

"Alice, stop!" she scolded herself again. "Don't be such a baby! You can just shrink yourself down again."

So Alice picked up the shrinking drink and took two sips this time, and shrunk back down to the right height to fit through the door. Only to remember that she had forgotten the key again!

"Oh no!" she gasped.

The large bottle in her hand, she hurried back over to the table, only to find herself swimming! Her tears had created a large pool, and gasping in fright, Alice climbed into the now empty bottle and allowed it to float through the key hole.

"At least I got through in the end," she assured herself.

* * *

Before you judge me, Alice is not acting older than six. This is exactly how she acted in both book and cartoon, and I have seen/read both. Oh, and Alice's clothes shrunk and grew with her because that's what happened in both book and cartoon, and if you notice in the flashbacks in the film, Alice was always wearing the same dress. She didn't have different ones like she did when she was nineteen.

**Don't be shy! Review and make yourself heard! **


	2. The Caucus Race

Sorry that this chapter is a little short. I couldn't find a way to make it any longer. Thank you to those who have reviewed!

Disclaimer: Don't own AIW; Disney, TB & LC do.

* * *

The Caucus Race

The large waves of Alice's tears washed the bottle up onto a shore, where Alice herself crawled out of it soaking wet.

"Well, I've never been wet before whilst wearing clothes," she commented to herself.

But her attention didn't stay on herself for very long. For across the beach, Alice saw a number of animals running around in a big circle, with what seemed to be a dodo bird standing by the side watching. Curious, Alice walked over, until she stood by the large bird's side. But he didn't seem to notice her; he was too busy watching the race.

"Um...excuse me?" Alice spoke up.

The dodo bird looked to the side of him, and he seemed quite surprised to see Alice standing there.

"Why, wherever did you come from?" he asked.

"Down a hole and through a keyhole," Alice replied honestly. "But may I ask what you are all doing?"

"We are having a Caucus Race," the dodo told her.

"A Caucus Race?"

"Yes," the dodo explained. "It is helping us get dry. You look quite wet, so why don't you join in?"

"But I don't even know what a Caucus Race is," Alice admitted.

It all seemed very confusing, because it didn't look like a race at all. All the animals – birds, lobsters, mice and starfish – were all running around in a big circle. Where was the beginning and end? There couldn't be a race without a beginning and an end.

"It is an immediate adoption of an energetic remedy," the dodo explained.

"Pardon?"

The dodo sighed.

"You mark out the race course, which always has to be a circle," he explained a bit more clearly. "And then, everyone taking part places themselves anywhere on the course. They can begin running whenever they like, and can stop whenever they like. There are no winners or losers."

"But then how do they know when the race is over?" Alice asked, puzzled.

"Well, whoever is hosting the race – in this case, me – will call out to everyone when to stop," the dodo continued. "Now run along. You'll never get dry just standing there listening to me."

So Alice hurried over to the other animals, joining the race. She found herself getting quite dry, but kept on almost bumping into animals who had stopped without warning. Out of breath, she paused and stood to the side and took in deep breaths.

"You cannot stop yet!" the dodo called to her. "I haven't said that you could!"

"But you said that I can stop whenever I like!" Alice protested.

Suddenly, the White Rabbit hurried on by, looking at his pocket watch again.

"Oh dear! I'm late!" he cried, before hurrying away.

"Mr Rabbit! Wait!" Alice called, hurrying after him.

She was glad to be away from the beach, and the dodo who was still trying to tell her to come back and join the race again. But Alice thought that she was quite dry, already.

* * *

The next chapter should hopefully be longer. Please review!


	3. Tweedledum and Tweedledee

So this chapter is a little longer, and it introduces Tweedledum and Tweedledee. I hope I got their way of talking OK; it was hard to write, I can tell you all that.

* * *

Tweedledum And Tweedledee

Alice hurried after the White Rabbit as he led her into some dark woods, but the trees being so close together, Alice soon lost sight of him. Oh dear, why must she always lose sight of him whenever she came close?

"Mr Rabbit?" she called. "Where are you?"

Wandering round, her eyes darted from one tree to the other, before she gazed behind a particularly large tree. And unknown to her, two round boys gazed round the other side behind her, one sitting on the other's back. Both were about two inches taller than Alice and both were identical, wearing striped t-shirts and had no hair. And they were both very round.

They exchanged glances, before the first got off the second and they stood behind Alice. So when she turned back round again, she gasped, almost bumping into them. She had never seen boys as round as them before.

"Why, what very round boys," she gasped, amazed.

They really were a peculiar sight. She took a step closer to inspect them, quite forgetting that they were alive, and found herself leaning in much too close for comfort – on their behalf, anyway. The one she was inspecting – the one named Tweedledum – backed away with an annoyed look.

"If you think we being wax-works, you ought to pay to see us looking here," he told her.

Alice gasped as she backed away, startled. Well, she had never expected him to do that, for she had forgotten that they were alive. But they were, as she had just seen.

"Contrariwise, wax-works weren't being made to take a look at without paying nothing, no-how," the other one – named Tweedledee – added.

"I'm sorry," Alice apologized, trying to keep up with their odd way of speaking, before realizing something. "But wax-works don't talk, so you can't be wax-works. Which means that I don't have to pay to see you."

"Right, if it was so, it might be," Tweedledee told her. "And if it were so, it would be. But as it isn't, it ain't. That's logic."

This, of course, confused poor little Alice even more. These boys were even more odd than the dodo back on the beach and the rabbit in a waistcoat.

"Pardon?" she questioned. "I don't understand. It doesn't make any sense."

"Of course it don't make no sense, no-how," Tweedledee resorted.

"Nothing makes sense here in Underland," Tweedledum added.

Of course, he had said this so fast, that Alice misheard the name of the place. She thought that he had said 'Wonderland'.

"Wow, what an unusual name," she commented, although she had to admit that the name suited the place. "Well, it was nice meeting you, but I really must be going."

She turned to walk deeper into the woods, but the two boys stood in front of her.

"You're doing this all backwards," Tweedledee informed her.

"We greet first, then we say goodbye," Tweedledum explained. "How-do-you-do?"

Both grabbed a hand each, but they each grabbed the opposite hand, so Alice found herself shaking with one arm crossed over the other. Not only that, but they were shaking her hands so hard, that Alice found her entire body shaking too.

"Um...how-do-you-do?" Alice said hesitantly.

"Very, very well," Tweedledum replied.

"Very, very, _very_ well," Tweedledee also replied. "See, you are a catching onto to good manners already. Now, you need to speak your current name and we shall speak ours."

"Well, my name is Alice Kingsleigh," Alice stated.

"I'm Tweedledee, and he's Tweedledum," Tweedledee responded.

"Contrariwise, I'm Tweedledum and he's Tweedledee," Tweedledum added.

"Pleased to meet you," Alice greeted, although she was still confused; she had quite forgotten who was who already. "Now, if you can both excuse me, I'm looking for the White Rabbit."

She went to walk away again, but once more, the two boys blocked her way. They were confusion _and_ annoying, now.

"Hold up, this here visit has only just started," Tweedledee told her.

"We need to do something first," Tweedledum added. "Would you liked to play hide-and-go-seek?"

"Button, button, who's got the button?"

"Maybe if you stay around long enough, we may have one of our battles."

They began to hit and kick each other, Alice blinking at them in surprise. But when they didn't stop, she gasped; she didn't want them getting hurt!

"Don't hurt yourselves!" she gasped.

"Don't you worry there, we fight all time round," Tweedledee assured her.

"Well, that's nice to know, but I really must follow the Rabbit," Alice explained.

"Why?"

"Because I want to know where he's going."

"Why?"

"Because I'm curious."

Both boys began to tut-tut.

"You shouldn't be curious, no-how," Tweedledum warned her.

"The oysters were also curious, and you remember rightly what happened to them, don't you not?" Tweedledee asked.

"Well, no, I don't," Alice admitted. "What _did_ happen to them?"

"You never heard of the story of The Walrus and the Carpenter?" Tweedledum asked.

"It's also known as The Curious Oysters, but whichever way you like to call it," Tweedledee resorted. "They were hungry, and when they saw them oysters resting below the waves, they tricked them right out of there to share a walk."

"The oysters were curious, so followed," Tweedledum continued. "So they did follow, and...sniff...both the Walrus and the Carpenter ate them all up."

They both began to sniff on their tears, and Alice found herself standing on her tip-toes to place reassuring hands on both their shoulders. They may have only just met, but she still felt sympathy for them.

"How dreadful!" she gasped. "Whoever would do such a terrible thing like that? I have never even eaten an oyster, and I don't think I should be able to ever again."

"You should never even consider it, no-how," Tweedledum told her.

"I shall keep that in mind," Alice told them, backing away, "but now, I really must be going-"

"You can't go yet, no-how!" Tweedledee told her.

"We need to tell you about Old Father William!" Tweedledum said.

But before he could even begin, there was a caw overhead, and the two boys let out a gasp. The dark shadow cast over them, circling the small company.

"CROW!" they both cried, before hurrying away into the trees, leaving Alice standing alone.

"Well, it's just a crow," she realized.

But then she remembered that she was smaller than her usual heigh, therefore, the crow was much larger. And who's to say that it wouldn't mistake her for a bug and swoop down to catch her, eating her all up? So she hid underneath one of the trees until she was certain that it had gone.

* * *

**Please review! **


	4. Absolem

So I decided to upload again, since this chapter was already written up.

* * *

Absolem

Alice found herself walking into a beautiful garden filled with tall flowers, far taller than any she had ever seen. Not only that, but the garden was also full of curious insects; flies which looked like dragons, and flies which looked like rocking-horses. It took Alice a while to see the logic behind it, if any at all – horseflies and dragonflies. She also spotted a small green pig hurrying on by.

"Curiouser and curiouser," she gasped.

Some butterflies flew past her, but their wings were in the shape of bread with butter on them.

"And even curiouser butterflies," she observed, watching them.

"You mean _bread_-and-butterflies."

Alice turned, but saw no one but herself standing in the garden. Well, that was strange. Alice swore that she had heard someone speaking to her.

"Hello?" she called hesitantly. "Who's there, please?"

Her gaze fell upon a large flower, which was all that was behind her, but she shook her head at the thought.

"Nonsense," she told herself. "Flowers can't talk."

"We _can_ talk."

Alice gasped when she noticed that the pink rose she had seen before actually had a _human_ face! Behind her, and tiger-lily was gazing down at her, also with a human face.

"Talking flowers!" Alice exclaimed. "Do all flowers talk?"

"Of course they do!" the rose told her.

"But only if there's anyone worth talking to," the tiger-lily added.

"How strange," Alice commented. "Have any of you seen a White Rabbit come this way?"

"No, but you could ask Absolem," the tiger-lily replied.

"Absolem knows everything," the rose added. "He's a blue caterpillar, and he sits upon a mushroom in that direction."

She pointed her petal along the path, and after thanking her, Alice followed it. She soon found herself walking through a tall forest of mushrooms – some even taller than trees – when suddenly, she heard a loud bark. And all of a sudden, a large bloodhound puppy hopped out of nowhere, yapping happily at her.

"Poor little thing!" Alice gasped.

But then she feared that he might eat her up, so hurried to hide underneath one of the mushrooms. She picked up a stick and threw it as hard as she could, and with a happy yap, the puppy took off after it.

"I would have like to play with it, if I was not so small," Alice said to herself.

She continued onwards, until she found herself entering a could of smoke which surrounded one mushroom in particular. But then, the smoke cleared, and Alice could make out a blue caterpillar sitting on the mushroom, smoking a hookah. Their eyes locked, and he looked at her with interest.

"Who are you?" he asked.

"Absolem?" Alice questioned, just in case this was another blue caterpillar.

"You're not Absolem, I'm Absolem," he told her. "Stupid girl."

He breathed in her face, and Alice coughed as she waved away the smoke. Well, how rude.

"The question is: who are _you_?" he asked again.

"I'm Alice," Alice replied. "Although, I've changed so much since this morning, that I'm not sure any more. Nothing has been clear to me ever since I fell down that rabbit hole."

"Rabbit hole?" Absolem questioned. "Do you mean to tell me that you come from up top?"

"Yes, I suppose so," Alice realized. "I must come from up top, since I fell down to get here."

"And you have changed since then?" Absolem asked again.

"Yes, I have changed size in order to get through the door," Alice explained. "First I shrunk in order to go through, but then I forgot the key, so I had to grow again to get it. Then I shrunk again."

"So do you want to be you're right height again?" Absolem questioned.

"Yes, that and-"

"One side will make you grow taller, and one side will make you grow shorter," was all he said, before he disappeared into the smoke again.

"Side of what?" Alice asked.

"The mushroom."

Alice looked at the mushroom which was still visible, and reaching out both arms, she broke of a piece from each side. She gave each one a look. Now she had found herself in a tricky situation.

"But which is which?" she thought aloud to herself. "Oh well, I suppose I better give one a try."

So, she took a large bite out of one of them, and it wasn't long before she found herself shooting upwards through the trees and ended up twenty-feet tall. And what was more, there was a bird's nest resting on her head.

"Serpent! Serpent!" the bird seated in it cried. "Go away! Shoo! Shoo!"

"I am not a serpent!" Alice protested, stomping her foot.

But the bird wasn't listening.

"Serpent! Serpent!"

Sighing, Alice raised her other hand and took a bite out of the other side. Instantly, she shrunk back down to where she had started.

"Well, that was a waste of time," she said to herself. "Perhaps if I should take just a small bite."

She nibbled the side which would make her grow, and this time, she grew up to her right height. She sighed happily. It was good to be back to normal again. Putting away her pieces of mushroom, Alice set off into the woods once more.

* * *

**Please review! **


	5. The Cheshire Cat

**I don't usually write Author's Notes in BOLD, but I want people to read this. I really appreciate all the favs and alerts that I've been getting for this story and my other ones, and a big thanks to all those who have already reviewed, but please, if you are reading this and have not reviewed yet, then please, please REVIEW! I'm not a review freak, but being honest, lovely reviews tend to give me confidence with my writing, and they make me update a lot faster. Reviews tell me that people are loving my stories. If I don't get them, then I think that my stories aren't very good, so I won't write. So, the more reviews I get, the more I write. Sounds fair, right? Even if it's a short review, it still helps!**

* * *

The Cheshire Cat

The wood – known as the Tulgey Wood – that Alice had found herself in was certainly a strange one. There were signs all over the place, pointing her in many different directions. Yonder, Queast, Snud. Alice had never heard of such funny places. They sounded like something out of Shakespeare, which she had been forced to learn about one summer afternoon by her sister, similar to the one she had been enjoying some hours before. Or was it minutes? Alice really wasn't sure any more. In the end, she followed a sign which pointed to a place called Witzend.

"But how should I ever find the White Rabbit?" she asked herself.

"You could always ask directions."

She gasped and turned, and sitting on a branch not very far off, was a large cat. Curious, Alice walked slowly towards him, before coming to a stop and placing her arms behind her back. The cat was very peculiar; he had blue stripes, large green eyes, and was grinning from ear to ear. She never knew that cats could smile. But then again, she didn't know that rabbits wore waistcoats, that flowers could talk, or that caterpillars could smoke hookahs. So really, she wasn't expecting anything less.

"Why, you're a cat!" she gasped.

She was glad to see a cat here, for it reminded her of Dinah back home. Oh, she really did miss Dinah! If only she had come along for the ride; perhaps she could have been able to talk down here? It would be interesting to hear what she has to say.

"A Cheshire Cat," the cat said. "Although I prefer to be called Chessur."

"Well, Chessur, I was wondering which way I should go?" she asked him.

"It depends on where you want to get to," Chessur told her. "If it does not matter, then it does not matter which way you go."

He disappeared, and reappeared next to Alice's shoulder. Only this time, to Alice's surprise, it was just his head! It was even more strange than him grinning!

"Well, I would like to get somewhere, although I was looking for the White Rabbit," Alice told him. "Did he come this way?"

"I don't know," Chessur said, the rest of his body reappearing. "Perhaps you should ask the Hare and the Hatter. They are having a tea party at the Hare's house, in that direction."

He pointed ahead of him, before disappearing and reappearing back on his branch. Alice wished that he would stop doing that. It was very unsettling.

"They are both mad, you know," he told her.

"I guess it's better than nothing," Alice sighed. "And Father did say that all the best people are mad."

"Of course they are," Chessur told her, before he disappeared slowly, his smile being the last thing to vanish.

Alice hung around for a small amount of time, in case he were to appear again, before setting off in the direction of the March Hare's home.

* * *

Sorry that chapter was short, but the Mad Hatter makes his appearance in the next one!


	6. The Mad Tea Party

So this is a double upload, but only because a certain Hatter appears in this chapter! Enjoy!

* * *

The Mad Tea Party

Following the cat's directions, Alice soon found herself walking into a clearing which was bursting with music, and ahead of her, she saw a long table stood in the centre. There was an old windmill in the background, which made it obvious to Alice that she had arrived at the home of the March Hare; it looked just like a hare, in her opinion. It even appeared to be looking at her!

The table was well laid, full of cakes, scones, bread-and-butter and tea, and three guests sat at the far end. One of which was a small white dormouse sat in one of the teapots, which surprised Alice quite a lot.

"But I guess that teapot does not have any tea in it," she said to herself.

The March Hare himself sat opposite, his ears flopping about all over the place as he kept trying to juggle sugar cubes with his paws, but failed every time. He just laughed it off, though.

The third guest was the one Alice assumed to be the Mad Hatter, but who also caught her attention the most. He had a hat, of course, but his skin was very pale, his hair was a striking orange colour, and his eyes were green with madness. Any other six-year-old girl would have ran at the sight of him, but Alice felt herself drawn to him.

The Hare saw Alice first.

"No room!" he cried, throwing a cup in her direction.

Alice ducked instantly, the cup soaring over her head and hitting the tree behind.

"But there's plenty of room!" Alice protested, pointing at all the empty seats.

"She's right, don't be silly, Thackery," the Hatter told the Hare, before offering a seat to Alice. "Take a seat, my dear."

Alice felt inclined to sit, since she had been offered. Her eyes widened at all the delicious food that was on the table, but she didn't want to start eating, for her hosts had not invited her to yet. Alice had been well brought up, after all.

"Would you like some wine?" the March Hare offered her.

"I am much too young to drink wine," Alice replied. "And besides, I don't see any wine."

"That's because there isn't any," the Hare told her.

"Then why offer it?" Alice asked, puzzled.

But instead of giving her a straight answer, the March Hare just began to balance a fork on his nose, with a teapot on top of the fork. Alice found herself laughing at the sight, just as the teapot fell and landed on the March Hare's head.

"Thackery, not at the table!" the Hatter told him, before turning to Alice. "Please, have some tea!"

Holding the teapot high above his head, he poured some tea into her cup. Alice watched in awe.

"Have some sugar!" the dormouse cried, before throwing a lump of sugar in her direction.

Alice flinched as it landed directly in the cup, tea splashing everywhere. This really _was_ a mad tea party! _But it's certainly a lot more fun than the ones that Mother holds with her friends_, Alice thought.

"Your hair wants cutting," the Hatter observed, after looking at Alice with curiosity.

"That's what Mother always tells me," Alice said. "But Father says that my hair is lovely just the way it is."

"Of course it is, but why is a raven like a writing desk?" the Hatter asked.

Alice blinked in surprise.

"Sorry?"

"Do you have any idea why a raven is like a writing desk?" the Hatter asked again.

Alice gave it some thought. She had never been that good at riddles, and her father would often tease her by giving her difficult ones. It frustrated her very much.

"I give up," she said finally. "What's the answer?"

"I haven't the slightest idea," the Hatter replied, and the other two laughed out loud.

Alice was about to ask why he asked it if _he_ didn't even know the answer, but the Hatter spoke before she could.

"Oh, I do apologize for not getting introduced!" he began. "My name is Tarrant Hightopp, but I'm most often referred to as the Mad Hatter. That's Thackery, the March Hare. And the little dormouse is Mallymkun."

"Pleased to meet you!" the little white dormouse said, bowing.

"I'm Alice Kingsleigh," Alice introduced herself. "I'm of six years of age, and I live in London."

"London?" the Hatter echoed. "You mean...up top?"

"Well, I guess you could call it that," Alice replied. "I followed a White Rabbit and fell down his hole."

"We really have to fix that problem," the Hatter said, before taking out his pocket watch and shaking it a little. "What time is it?"

"I...I don't know. Everything has been so confusing since I fell down here, that I'm not sure any more," Alice told him.

"Time is being funny with you, that's all," the Hatter observed, placing his watch back in his pocket. "It does that for me, sometimes. Did you offend him in anyway?"

"I didn't know you could offend Time?" Alice questioned. "Unless you are talking about Father Time, in which case, he can probably be offended."

"I didn't know Time had a father, but I would like to keep on both their good sides," the Hatter said.

The other two laughed madly. Alice found herself very confused, but decided not to ask any more on the matter.

"Clean cup!" the March Hare suddenly cried out.

"Move down!" the Hatter announced.

"But I haven't even finished mine-" Alice tried to explain, but all three of them were already on the table, knocking aside cups and teapots as they changed seats.

The Hatter noticed Alice still seated, so took her by the hand and dragged her along the table too, before sitting her down in a chair next to him. Alice found it all very bizarre.

"Do you know any good songs?" the Hatter asked her, after getting settled and pouring out a fresh new cup of tea.

"I do, but I would much rather like to hear a song that you sing down here," Alice requested. "They must be interesting."

"As you wish, here's a little song we sing in honour of the White Queen," the Hatter began.

"_Twinkle, twinkle little bat, how I wonder where you're at,_" the three of them sang. "_Up above the world you fly, like a tea-tray in the sky..._"

Even the songs were nonsense! It reminded Alice of a similar song which her sister had taught her.

"That song is almost the same as one which my sister once sang to me," she said aloud.

"Really?" the Hatter questioned. "Sing it to us!"

"Sing! Sing! Sing!" both the March Hare and Mallymkun chanted.

So Alice began to sing.

"_Twinkle, twinkle little star, how I wonder where you are,_" she sang. "_Up above the world so high, like a diamond in the sky. __Twinkle, twinkle little star, how I wonder where you are._"

When she had finished, all three of them clapped gleefully.

"My, what a sweet little voice you have," the Hatter said. "Reminds me of my own little sister, who's the same age as you. Terissa, her name is. I think you two would get along quite well."

"If I ever visit again, I should like to meet her," Alice answered honestly.

"Now, shall we investigate things that begin with the letter 'M'?" the Hatter suggested.

The other two raised their cups in response, laughing. Alice glanced round with confusion. What was so fascinating about the letter 'M'?

"Why 'M'?" she asked.

"Why-ever not?" the Hatter replied. "There are a lot of interesting words which begin with the letter 'M'. Moon, memory, much, muchness – you have quite a lot of muchness, if I do say so myself."

"Really?" Alice questioned, unsure whether to take this as a compliment or as an offence.

"Of course!" the Hatter answered her. "It takes a lot of muchness to follow the White Rabbit down his hole."

At this, Alice remembered the reason she had came here in the first place. With all the excitement, she had completely forgotten.

"Oh yes, that's what I wanted to ask you," she remembered. "Do you know where he is going?"

"Who's going?"

"The White Rabbit," Alice said. "I was following him because I had never seen a rabbit in a waistcoat before, and I was curious as to where he was going. And now I need to ask him how to get home."

"Well, the only place I can think of is the Red Queen's castle," the Hatter replied.

"The Red Queen?" Alice echoed.

"Yes. He's her page when she plays croquet," the Hatter explained. "It is a nasty game, though. She uses flamingos as mallets and hedgehogs as balls. Poor McTwisp. He hates it, really, but he knows that the Red Queen will chop off his head if he doesn't do it."

"It does sound unusual," Alice commented. "How do I find the castle?"

"Well, it is in the red deserts of Crims by the Crimson Sea, in the Port Town of Salazen Grum. Just follow the signs," the Hatter explained, before his eyes frowned. "Why? Are you leaving so soon?"

"I would loved to have stayed longer, but I have to go," Alice replied, hopping down from her seat. "My mother and father will be ever so worried if I don't return soon. But I will come back and visit again, and maybe next time, I can bring my father along. He would like it down here."

"Very well," the Hatter said, as Alice turned to go. "Fairfarren, Alice."

Alice turned back to him, her eyebrows knotted together with confusion.

"Pardon?"

"Fairfarren," the Hatter repeated. "It means fair well."

"Oh," Alice realized, before waving to him. "Fairfarren, then!"

And with that she turned back round, and headed into the dark woods once more.

* * *

So it was quite different as to what happened in both book and cartoon; Alice left in a huff both times round. But I think that it would have been different and that the characters wouldn't have been as rude in the Burton universe, especially the Hatter, because of the reaction they had when Alice returned in the movie. So I've made them a lot nicer.

**Please review!**


	7. The Red Queen

So as you'll see, this encounter with the Red Queen will be like it was in the cartoon more than the book. Obvious reason, the Red Queen didn't like Alice much (as shown in her first appearance when she recognizes her in the Oraculum), so I would imagine the encounter to be more like this.

* * *

The Red Queen

Alice really did try to follow the Hatter's directions exactly, but once again, she found herself lost. Every tree looked the same, she couldn't see any helpful signs anywhere (and the only signs read complete and utter nonsense), and the wood she was in was getting darker and darker. It was hopeless, and what was more, she was afraid of the dark.

"Oh dear, I'm lost again," she spoke to herself. "Now I shall never get home, and I shall never see Father and Mother again, nor Margaret or Dinah. Nor will I ever find that White Rabbit."

Sighing, Alice sat down on a log, and began to cry. She didn't even bother to scowl herself for it.

"Crying won't get you anyway, luv."

Alice opened her eyes and hopped up, and there sitting on a branch above her, was the Cheshire Cat again. He was still smiling.

"Chessur! It's you!" she gasped happily.

"Who else were you expecting it to be?" he asked. "The White Rabbit?"

"No," Alice admitted. "I asked the Hatter where the White Rabbit is, and he said that he would be at the Red Queen's castle. He gave me directions, but I can't remember them, and I'm lost. Do you know they way?"

"I know a short cut," the cat said helpfully. "McTwisp uses it whenever he's late."

"McTwisp?"

"The White Rabbit," Chessur replied. "Nivens McTwisp is his name."

He pulled on a tree branch, and the trunk opened up to reveal a door. Alice peered inside and stepped through, and found herself inside a neatly-cut garden full of plants, although they weren't talking plants like the ones she had encountered before. Something didn't seem right about the garden; almost _too_ neat, for Alice's liking. Not even the Ascot garden was a neat as this. All seemed peaceful, until...

"WHITE ROSES!"

Alice jumped as a screech carried across the garden, and she followed it until she rounded a corner and found herself standing before a large company of people, all of whom did not pay any attention to her. They were all dressed in red, white and black, and had something about them which wasn't quite ordinary. They all either had a big nose, big ears, or a big belly. Three of them seemed normal enough, though; one was a man dressed in black with a heart-shaped eye-patch over his eyes, and carried a sword at his side. He made Alice shudder; she didn't like the look of him one bit.

The White Rabbit, of course, was there, twitching nervously and dressed in page clothing. The third was a small, frail man who shivered nervously like the rabbit, and wore a small crown on top of his head. Alice assumed that he must be the Red King.

And finally, in the centre, stood a woman with a large head, who Alice assumed was the Red Queen. And boy, did she have a big head! Alice knew that it was rude to stare, but she found it so hard _not_ to stare. The head of the Red Queen was just so large; it looked very odd and out-of-place on top of her body. She was glaring angrily at her gardeners, who were bowing before her next to a bush of white roses.

"We're sorry, Majesty!" one cried. "We thought you said to plant white roses!"

"Why would I ask for white roses?" the Queen demanded. "Who do I look like? The White Queen? OFF WITH THEIR HEADS!"

Knights dressed in red armour stepped forwards, and one by one, they dragged the gardeners away.

"Page, I want these white roses removed!" the Red Queen ordered. "And if they are not, then-"

"Why don't you just paint them red?"

All of them turned, and they gave confused looks when they saw little Alice standing in front of them nervously. Of course, Alice had thought that it would be a tragic waste to get rid of such beautiful roses, which was why she had made the suggestion. She gulped before speaking again.

"Why...instead of wasting such beautiful flowers, why don't you just paint the roses red?" she suggested again.

The Red Queen knotted her eyebrows together in confusion. She had never seen _this_ little girl before, and she was sure that she had not invited a little girl to her castle. But still, the suggestion she had made was actually quite a good one.

"And what, is _this_?" she asked.

"Um...I think you mean 'who', Majesty," the White Rabbit corrected her. "This is..."

"Alice Kingsleigh," Alice answered for him, doing a curtsy before the Queen. "My name is Alice Kingsleigh."

"And did you just say that you could paint these roses red?" she questioned.

"Why, yes, if you would like them to be red?" Alice suggested.

The Queen looked down at her, before she smiled.

"My dear girl, anyone willing to do that is welcome to a game of croquet with me," she said, before turning to her court. "Someone find her some red paint, a paint brush and a ladder, quickly!"

Three men hurried away to do as asked, and soon came back with paint, a paint brush and a ladder. Bucket of paint and paint brush in hand, Alice stepped up the ladder and began to paint the roses red, just like she said that she would, with the Queen watching her. Under such pressure, Alice made sure to do a good job of it, which she did in the end.

"They look marvellous!" the Red King exclaimed.

"Now, we shall play croquet!" the Red Queen announced, leading Alice to the croquet grounds.

Two mallets and balls were brought out, and Alice couldn't help but gasp. The Hatter had been right; she _did_ use flamingos and hedgehogs! Poor things. Alice felt pity for them, but did not dare say anything against the Queen. Otherwise she would end up like those poor gardeners. The Red Queen went first. She took aim with her flamingo, and fired the poor hedgehog way out of aim, but everyone clapped her, anyway.

Alice went next. But she felt sorry for the poor things she was using, so pretended to have a bad aim so as not to hurt them. The Queen didn't mind; it meant that she was winning, after all.

It was the Queen's turn again, but as she bent over to hit the hedgehog, Chessur appeared by Alice's side, just as a head.

"How are you getting along, little one?" he asked.

Alice gasped as she turned, but didn't seem too surprised to see him. She had quite gotten used to him appearing out of nowhere by this time.

"Not very well," Alice replied. "Although I don't mind. I don't want to hurt the poor things, and I'm sure I shall lose my head if I win."

"Of course," the cat said. "The Queen _always_ wins."

"But I don't think that's hardly fair," Alice commented.

"Who are you talking to!" the Queen demanded.

Her face was glowing dangerously red, and she was glaring at Alice with angry eyes.

"Nobody, your Majesty," Alice told her, doing a curtsy.

The Queen scowled at her, before turning back to her game. The Knave of Hearts – who stood in the background – gave Alice a suspicious look, before turning back to watch.

"You know, we could make her really angry."

Alice looked around, and seated on the Red Queen's behind, was Chessur. What was strange, though, was that Alice seemed to be the only person who saw him. As the Queen raised her flamingo behind her, Chessur took it and hooked the beak under her skirt.

"No! Stop!" Alice cried, hurriedly shaking her head.

But it was already too late. The Queen swung, and her skirt went with it, causing her to fall and miss the shot. She stood up in anger, he face turning redder and redder by the second.

"OFF WITH HER HEAD!" she cried, pointing at Alice.

Alice gasped, raising her hands to her neck. How could the blame be put on her? There wasn't even any evidence to support the accusion! It was rather unfair, in her opinion.

"Um...my dear, she is only a little girl," the King spoke up sheepishly. "Couldn't she have a trial first?"

"A trial should be fun, Majesty," the Knave agreed.

The Queen gave the Knave a flirtatious look (which the King seemed to miss), before turning back to a trembling Alice.

"Very well," she reluctantly agreed. "Let the trial begin!"


	8. The Trial

Again, this will be different to the book and more like the cartoon. The reason being that in the book, it was the Knave standing in a trial, and since the Queen liked the Knave in the film, this wouldn't make much sense. So this is how I think the trial went.

* * *

The Trial

Alice was brought to stand in the throne room of the Red Queen's castle, with the Red Queen seated on her throne at the far end, the Knave and King standing beside her, and the jury seated by the side. All were animals, ranging from frogs to fish, along with some monkeys, too. The White Rabbit blew on his golden trumpet.

"Your Majesty, the Knave of Hearts, the King, the jury, and loyal subjects," he began, "I hear-by open this case. This young girl here, who calls herself Alice Kingsleigh, has been charged with tricking her Majesty into a game of croquet in which she was highly embarrassed-"

"Oh, just get on with it!" the Red Queen hurried him along.

"Very well," the White Rabbit said, bowing. "Call forwards the first witness!"

The doors opened, and Alice turned to see who it was. She gasped. It was the March Hare! He was being pulled along by his ears, a cup of tea in his hand. He must have just come from the tea party which Alice had left not long before. But why was he a witness? He hadn't even been there!

"You're all late for tea!" he cried out, launching the cup across the room.

It was heading straight for the Knave of Hearts, but he saw it coming and ducked, allowing it to hit the wall behind him. The March Hare laughed madly, and didn't seem to acknowledge Alice at all.

"What do you know about all this?" the King asked him.

"Nothing!"

"Nothing?" the King questioned.

"Nothing!"

"Well, that's very important," the Queen stated, her face quite serious. "Jury, write that down!"

The jury wrote that down as ordered, and Alice found herself frowning with confusion. How could 'nothing' be important?

"Call the next witness!" the White Rabbit called.

A small teapot was brought forwards, and from it, the dormouse hopped out with her hair pin drawn.

"Who is it?" she cried, swinging her hair pin around. "I'll give them the old one-two!"

Her eyes fell on Alice, and she scowled.

"Oh, it's just you," she sighed, annoyed. "I was hoping for a better fight."

"Please, help me," Alice whispered.

"What have you got to say?" the King asked the little mouse.

The dormouse turned to them. She didn't like the Red monarchs that much, so decided to help Alice and say utter nonsense.

"_Twinkle, twinkle little bat, how I wonder where you're at,_" she sang.

The jury wrote this down, although Alice couldn't see how this would help. It was only a song!

"The next witness, please!" the White Rabbit called.

Alice turned, and gasped in delight when she saw the Mad Hatter being brought forwards. Although, he was too caught up in his cup of tea to see her.

"And what do you know?" the King asked.

"About what?" the Hatter asked.

He turned, and he gasped silently when he saw Alice standing next to him, looking quite scared. Realization seemed to dawn upon him at how much trouble she had gotten herself into.

"Help me," she begged him in a whisper.

In deep thought, the Hatter turned back to the Red Queen.

"I don't know anything, since I was having tea with this lovely little girl here," he answered.

Alice sighed. Maybe if they believed him, they would forget that she was ever at the croquet game and let her go.

"Wait, she was having tea with you?" the King questioned.

"Precisely."

"Does that mean that she's not guilty?" the King whispered to the White Rabbit.

It seemed to be working, but of course, not for very long.

"Oh, just ignore him, he's mad," the Red Queen informed everyone. "Take them away!"

The Hatter gave Alice a helpless look, before he was dragged away along with the Hare and the dormouse. Alice watched them all go, particularly the Hatter, knowing that she was probably doomed now.

"Well, I think it's time for a sentence," the Queen decided.

Alice began to panic, but then felt something in her pockets. It was the mushroom pieces! She had quite forgotten about those! She took both out, deciding that if she was twenty-feet-tall again, the Queen would be too frightened of her to cut off her head. But in panic, she forgot which was which. So instead, shoved both in her mouth.

"OFF WITH HER-"

But the Queen stopped short as Alice grew, her head bumping against the ceiling. This was a lot better; now she was too big for anyone to cut off _her_ head! The entire court gasped.

"Oh dear!" the White Rabbit gasped.

"Now I can say what I want to say," Alice stated. "Your Majesty, you are the meanest, most horriblest Queen I have ever met! You cut off people's heads and you use poor little animals for your game! It is not nice! And your head is _big_ and _bulbous!_"

Alice was on a roll, and most of the court gasped at her insults. Others stayed quiet, silently agreeing with her. But suddenly, she shot down to her right height again, since she had eaten both sides of the mushroom. Now the shrinking side of it was taking effect. She gasped when she found the Queen's face turning red once more. This was not good.

"OFF WITH HER HEAD!"

The Knave drew his sword immediately and began to stride forwards with the Red Knights behind him, their spears pointing directly at Alice. Alice let out a gasp of fright, before she turned tail and fled the throne room.

* * *

**Please review! **


	9. Rescued

So we're now entering the original plot which I had planned. Basically, it's what would have happened if Alice had stayed in Underland after her first visit; I just thought that it would be a little less confusing if I did what happened on her first visit first.

I hope you all like it!

* * *

Rescued

Alice ran as fast as her little feet could carry her, through the many hallways and out into the garden once more. The Red Queen's booming voice echoed behind her, and the sound of the Red Knights chasing her could still be heard not very far away. In panic, Alice hurried around the garden to try and find the little doorway again, but so much had happened since she had gone through it, that Alice found that she couldn't remember where it was.

"Oh, what should I do?" she exclaimed to herself. "I shall have my head chopped off, and I will never see Mother and Father again!"

She was about to cry, when suddenly, and hand slapped over her mouth and pulled her behind a bush. Alice struggled in the grasp, but whoever had her was too strong, and for a scary moment, Alice thought that it was the Knave of Hearts.

"Don't worry, you're safe," the gentle, hushed voice of the Hatter told her.

"It's you!" Alice said happily.

"Shush!" the Hatter hissed. "Stay quiet."

He poked his head out from behind the bush, and watched carefully as the Knave and the Red Knights passed on by. When they had gone, he let out a sigh and released Alice from his grasp.

"Come with me," he told her kindly, before taking her hand and leading her across the garden.

They came to the doorway which Alice had come through before and walked through it, Chessur shutting it behind them. The March Hare and the dormouse were waiting for them.

"Will they not follow us, though?" Alice asked.

"No, they don't know about that door," the Hatter explained, before he sighed. "Now, it won't take very long for the Red Queen to calm down and forget, but until then, you shall have to hide."

"Hide? But I want to go home," Alice told him.

"I know you do, but we need to find a way to send you home," the Hatter replied. "Until then, you can stay with me and my family. We're a mad bunch, but I'm sure you won't mind."

"Not at all," Alice said, before turning to Chessur. "But Chessur, why did you have to get the Queen so angry?"

"It's just so fun," Chessur said simply.

"Not when her head could have been chopped off," the Hatter mumbled in a Scottish accent.

"Apologies," Chessur apologized, before he disappeared altogether.

They walked back through the Tulgey Wood all the way to Witzend, the March Hare and the dormouse stopping at the home of the March Hare. They bid fair well (or Fairfarren) to the Hatter and Alice, before the March Hare disappeared inside his house and the dormouse climbed into her teapot.

"Now, my home isn't far," the Hatter told Alice as he led her through the wood.

* * *

Sorry for the short chapter.


	10. The Hightopp Clan

So the Hatter's sister and parents are characters from my other story Through The Looking Glass. I decided to use them in this too to save making up new characters. Enjoy!

* * *

The Hightopp Clan

"What is your family like?" Alice asked curiously.

"Well, like I said before, we're all mad," the Hatter explained. "An there are a lot of us. The Hightopp Clan is the largest in all of Underland, you know."

"Underland?" Alice questioned. "But I thought this place was called Wonderland?"

"Oh, you must have just misheard it wrong," the Hatter said. "More likely from one of the Tweedles."

"Yes, it was from them," Alice admitted. "I had the oddest time."

"Tell me about it," the Hatter asked of her.

So Alice told him everything about her adventure, from falling down the rabbit hole, all the way up to the croquet game with the Queen. She told him about the round hall, the drink and the cake which made her grow and shrink, the pool of tears, the Caucus Race with the dodo, the Tweedles, the talking flowers, the puppy, the caterpillar, the mushroom bits that made her grow and shrink, meeting Chessur, and of course, how she found the mad tea party.

"How do you find the Red Queen?" the Hatter asked, once she had finished.

"She's a very horrid lady," Alice answered. "I do not know why she is Queen."

"She isn't."

Alice blinked in surprise.

"She's not?"

"No, the White Queen rules over Underland," the Hatter explained. "She's the Red Queen's sister, but they are complete opposites. The White Queen loves animals, and cannot bring harm to any living creature. We just refer to the Red Queen as a 'Queen' because she is royalty, but she technically isn't one. Although she likes to think that she is."

"It's all very confusing, if you ask me," Alice stated.

"You'll get used to it," the Hatter told her.

They soon came upon lots of hat-shaped houses standing in a row, just as the sun was beginning to set in the distance. Alice sighed as she watched it. She had been gone all afternoon, and she just knew that her family would be looking for her, probably worried sick by now. Why did she have to be so curious and follow that White Rabbit?

"I suppose Mother, Father and Margaret will be wondering where I am," she sighed.

"They might not," the Hatter informed her. "Time is funny down here, and McTwisp told me that it travels differently compared to Time up there. By the time you get home, no time would have passed at all, hopefully."

"I hope you're right," Alice agreed.

The Hatter led her to the house right on the end and knocked on the door twice.

"If that's you, Tarrant, just let yourself in," a female voice called.

The Hatter did just that, and let himself in with Alice following cautiously behind him. Despite the odd shaped house, everything inside looked perfectly normal, and actually quite sane. But her thoughts were distracted when a girl her age, with dark brown hair and bright green eyes, came hurrying towards them.

"Tarrant!" she cried.

A smile appeared on the Hatter's face as he embraced his little sister in a hug, spinning her in the air above him with her squealing in delight. He set her back down again and turned her to Alice.

"Alice, this is my little sister, Terissa," he introduced. "Rissa, meet Alice."

"Nice to meet you," the little girl greeted.

"Nice to meet you, too," Alice greeted back.

Then, the faces of Oric and Elliearna Hightopp appeared from the kitchen, and they each gave Alice a confused look.

"Son, who is this?" Oric asked.

"Oh, this is Alice Kingsleigh," the Hatter explained. "She showed up at the tea party today."

He turned to the two girls.

"Rissa, why don't you show Alice all you hats I made for you upstairs?" he suggested.

"OK, come on, Alice!" Terissa said, taking Alice's hand and pulling her up the stairs.

When the two girls had disappeared into the bedroom, the Hatter turned back to his parents.

"It's getting late, Tarrant," Elliearna commented. "A girl as young as her should already be home."

"That's the problem, you see," the Hatter informed them. "She can't go home normally, because she's from up top."

"Up top?" the two parents echoed.

"Yes, she followed McTwisp down here by mistake," the Hatter explained. "She also met the Red Queen and almost got her head chopped off. I thought that it would be best to hide her here until Big Head calms down."

"Of course," Elliearna agreed. "But however do you plan to send her home?"

"I'm not sure," the Hatter puzzled. "I know that only McTwisp can go up the hole, despite the fact that anyone can come down it. And I guess there is the Looking-Glass, but no one has been able to open that in centuries."

"How about we take her to meet the White Queen?" Oric suggested. "We will be celebrating Keltikidik in two days time, and since you're now the Royal Hatter, we have all been invited to the palace. She can come too, and maybe the White Queen can send her home?"

"That is an excellent idea, Father," the Hatter exclaimed. "She can borrow Terissa's clothing for the time being. I only hope that the Queen can send her home. She is a very sweet little girl, and I would hate to see her upset."

* * *

**Please review! **


	11. Keltikidik

Sorry for the long gap. I've been focussing on other stories. Anyway, the Keltikidik celebration is something I read about in the Alice In Wonderland visual guide (seriously, that book is really handy), and I decided to use it for this story. I hope you all like it!

* * *

Keltikidik

Alice was a little sad that she had to wait a few days until she could go home, but she was excited about meeting the White Queen, and from what the Hatter had told her, the Keltikidik celebration sounded like a lot of fun. It was a celebration of the White Queen which Underland held once a year, where everyone could wear only white, drink only milk, and if they had to lie, then the lies could only be white ones.

She was introduced to the rest of the Hightopp Clan, who all adored this little blonde girl who the Hatter had found. They asked her many questions about life up top, and Alice answered them all the best that she could, but the questions stopped when someone asked her about her family, and the Hatter had to lead her away before she cried in front of everyone. He really hoped that the White Queen would be able to send her home; she was really starting to get homesick.

The day arrived, and the entire Hightopp Clan got dressed in white and prepared to head to Marmoreal; the location of the White Queen's castle. Alice borrowed one of Terissa's dresses, and as Elliearna put it, the colour suited her rather well. Alice laughed at the Hatter, though, for he did look silly dressed all in white, with his orange hair and green eyes standing out.

The party arrived at Marmoreal fashionably late, and Alice gasped in awe at the castle in front of her. It reminded her very much of her father's chess set, with castle pieces stood at the entrance, knight pieces carved into the stone walls and towers in the shape of bishop pieces.

"Do you like it?" the Hatter asked her, noticing the look of amazement spread across her face.

"It's wonderful," Alice said breathlessly, straining her neck upwards as they entered the building.

The ball room was packed with people, and gazing around her, Alice could make out some of the inhabitants who she had met two days before. There was the White Rabbit dressed in a white waistcoat, which pretty much blended in with his fur. There was also the Dodo, wearing a white jacket and holding a white walking stick. The Tweedles were there too, each dressed in white t-shirts and shorts, as well as a white bow tie each. She also saw Absolem, resting upon a high chair, smoking what looked to be a white hookah and wearing a small white bow tie. Chessur was floated above everyone, wearing a white bow tie. Mallymkun was at the far end of the room, wearing white clothing which like the White Rabbit, blended in with her fur. And finally, there was the March Hare, looking just as ridiculous as the Hatter did in his white clothing.

"There are a lot of people here," Alice observed.

"It's a very big celebration," the Hatter told her, his eyes scanning the crowd. "Ah! There's the White Queen now!"

He pointed over to where a number of people were gathered around one person, and Alice turned to see the most beautiful woman she had ever seen. Her hair was white, her skin was pale (but not as pale as the Hatter's), but her eyes, eyebrows, lips and nails were as black as night. She wore a beautiful white dress, and a little silver crown sat atop of her head.

"She's beautiful," Alice gasped.

"Would you like to say hello?" the Hatter asked her.

Alice hesitantly nodded, so the Hatter took her hand and led her over. The White Queen turned, and her lips formed a smile when she laid eyes upon him.

"Tarrant Hightopp," she greeted him, "it is good to see you and your clan here at Marmoreal."

"We wouldn't miss this celebration for anything," the Hatter told her, bowing, with Alice doing the same. "I have someone for you to meet."

He nudged Alice forwards, and the little girl gave a little curtsy.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, your majesty," she said, not forgetting her manners.

"Why, I have never seen you here before," the White Queen observed. "What is your name, and wherever do you come from?"

"My name is Alice Kingsleigh, your majesty," Alice replied politely. "And I come from up top."

"Up top?" the White Queen echoed, turning back to the Hatter. "However did she end up down here?"

"Alice!"

The three of them turned to see the Tweedles approaching, their eyes fixed firmly on Alice.

"How-do-you-do again!" they greeted her, each shaking the opposite hand so that Alice was once again, shaking with one arm crossed over the other.

"Well, since you already know each other, why not show her around, boys?" the White Queen asked them.

"Of course, your majesty," they both said in unison, before dragging Alice away into the crowd.

When they had vanished from sight, the White Queen turned back to the Hatter.

"However did she end up down here?" she asked him.

"From what she told me, she followed Nivens and fell down the hole by accident," the Hatter explained. "She met quite a few of us, and I first met her when she showed up at the tea party I was having with Thackery and Mally. Oh, and I must also tell you that she got on the wrong side of your sister and almost got her head chopped off."

"Oh, the poor dear," the White Queen exclaimed. "When did all this happen?"

"Two days ago," the Hatter explained. "I've kept her with me and my family until the Red Queen calmed down, and because I thought it would be best to bring her to you. You see, she's getting homesick, and I need to find a way to send her back up top. So I was wondering if you had something which might help?"

The White Queen was silent for a moment, before she gave him a grave look. The Hatter's hopeful face fell.

"I'm sorry, Tarrant, but there is only one substance which can send her home, and that's Jabberwocky blood," she explained.

"Jabberwocky blood?" the Hatter echoed. "You mean the blood of that _thing_ your sister keeps as a pet?"

The White Queen nodded sadly.

"So unless there's anyone willing to extract blood from the creature, there is no way I can send Alice home, I'm afraid," she told him.

The Hatter looked down, disappointed. What was he going to tell Alice now? He looked over to where she was dancing in a circle with the Tweedles and Thackery, and decided not to tell her yet. He didn't want to ruin her enjoyment.

* * *

The evening ended well, and the Hightopp Clan made their way back to Witzend, tired and worn out after dancing the night away. The Hatter had of course, performed his famous Futterwacken dance, which Alice had found rather amusing. She and Terissa had spent most of the night trying to copy him, but kept on tripping over their own feet every time. Both girls were very tired by the end of it, and while Oric carried his daughter home, the Hatter carried Alice, her head resting upon his shoulder.

They arrived back at the hat-shaped house, and after getting changed, Alice climbed into bed and allowed the Hatter to tuck her up under the covers.

"What did the White Queen say?" Alice finally asked. "Can she send me home?"

The Hatter let out a sigh. He had been dreading this question all night; what was he to tell her? That she had to stay in Underland forever? Of course, he didn't mind taking care of her, but it was Alice he was worried about. She was only six, and much too young to be without a mother and father to guide her.

"I did talk to her," he began. "And...she told me that in order to send you home, she needs the blood of the Jabberwocky."

"What's a...Jabberwocky?" Alice asked.

"It's a hideous creature," the Hatter told her. "With jaws that bite and claws that catch. And that's just it, you see. No one can get near it without having their head bitten off, so unless someone steps forth to slay it, we can't send you home. I'm sorry."

Alice looked at him blankly, strong emotions building up inside her, the greatest of all being sadness. She couldn't go home? That meant that she wouldn't see her father again, or her mother, or her sister, or her cat...

She sniffed as tears welled up in her eyes.

"Don't cry, Alice," the Hatter told her, his heart breaking as he watched her cry.

"I..._sniff_...I can't help it..._sniff_..." she was just able to chock out. "I shall never see my family again. And if I can't go home, then where do I go? Who will look after me?"

"We will," the Hatter replied, removing a stray hair from her face.

Alice smiled up at him. She had only known him for three days, and already she was considering him to be the best friend she had ever had.

"And Underland isn't so bad," he continued. "We have a lot of fun down here, and there are lots of celebrations. In fact, there's going to be some maypole dancing next week. Have you ever maypole danced before?"

"I've seen it, but I've never done it myself," Alice replied, calming down a little bit.

"Then perhaps you can give it a try, if you're feeling up to it?" the Hatter suggested.

Alice just nodded. The Hatter smiled before he stood up and left the room, wishing her a good night on the way out. Alice sighed as she turned over in bed, her thoughts thinking over what she had just been told. She would never see her home again. It made Alice sad, knowing that she'll never see her family again, but like the Hatter said, Underland wasn't so bad, right? And the maypole dancing sounded like fun, even though she didn't feel like trying it herself. Maybe living here wouldn't be so bad, after all.

If only she knew what really laid ahead of her.

* * *

I'm not really getting enough reviews in order to motivate me to write this, and I'm not sure whether I should just delete it or not. If you like this story, then review and tell me, and I might reconsider.


	12. The Horunvendush Day

OK, so there was a bit of an uproar when I said that I might delete this, so I'm continuing with it. It's just that I get so annoyed when people add my stories to favs and alerts but are too lazy to review. I mean, it's great that you all like my stories, but I would like to know _**WHY**_ you like them, please!

Sorry about that outburst. Anyway, enjoy!

* * *

The Horunvendush Day

Every member of the Hightopp Clan were wearing brand new hats which the Hatter had made, as they danced, clapped and enjoyed themselves in the fields of Witzend right outside the Tulgey Wood. Children were dancing around the maypole in the centre, and to the right of them, the White Queen sat upon her horse with her knights by her side, and the Hatter clapping along to the beat next to her. He smiled as he watched his younger sister dance around the maypole with a happy expression. In the background, the March Hare, Mallymkun and Chessur watched, enjoying the celebration as much as the Hightopp Clan was.

Standing next to the Hatter was little Alice, although she didn't look as happy as the people around her. Of course, she did like it here, but she was beginning to miss home more than ever. Were her parents worried about her? Was Margaret upset? And was Dinah coping without her? She tried to push these thoughts out of her head and continued to watch the dancing, determined not to bring the mood of the celebration down.

"Would you like to dance around the maypole?" the Hatter asked her, looking down at her.

Alice just shook her head wordlessly. She tried to hide the sadness in her eyes, but the Hatter could see right through her. Since his emotions were very close to the surface, he could easily tell how other people were feeling, and he knew that Alice was very unhappy.

"You don't like the celebration?" he asked.

"Oh no, I really do like it!" Alice told him. "But...I just miss home. My family are probably so worried."

"Alice, if there was any other way that I could send you home, then I would do it in a heartbeat," the Hatter explained. "Seeing you upset makes me sad, but there's no other way. Maybe one day, someone will finally step forth to slay the Jabberwocky, and then, we shall send you home."

The little girl found herself smiling up at him. He really was such a dear friend to her, even after only knowing each other for just over a week.

"But for now, just enjoy yourself," he continued. "There's no use feeling sad about something if nothing can be done. It's bad for the soul, it is."

Alice giggled before turning back to the maypole dancing. This really was such a happy place full of mystery and wonder, and even if she didn't go home ever, Alice knew that she would at least be happy and content. Nothing bad could happen here, right?

Suddenly, it grew dark, and Alice thought that a storm was gathering up ahead. But when she turned to look, here eyes went wide with horror at the sight of what looked to be a large dragon, it's red eyes burning in fierce hate. It let out a ear-piercing roar, and breathed fire upon the people below. And within seconds, the happy atmosphere of before instantly turned into chaos.

The March Hare yelled in fright, before grabbing Mallymkun (who attempted to leap forwards at the creature with her hair pin drawn) and hurrying away to safety. Chessur just vanished into thin air, which did not go unnoticed by the Hatter. Hightopp Clan members were screaming and running, trying to avoid the burning hell hole the place had become. The Queen's horse reared up in fright, and the Queen let out a scream, just as the crown fell from her head. The Hatter grabbed hold of the horses reins and tried to lead it away, and noticing Alice frozen in fear, he grabbed her with his free arm and held her beneath him, protecting her from the flames.

His hat fell from his head as he struggled, but the horse finally calmed down enough to allow him to lead the Queen out of the clearing. Desperate, the Hatter glanced backwards to see if anyone else had made it out, just in time to see the horrific sight of his own father get slaughtered by the Jabberwocky, in an attempt to save Terissa. Terissa was lying on the ground, wiping off the Jabberwocky blood which had spilled upon her, and she turned to face the Hatter with a look of fear. Then, in the blink of an eye, she...

...vanished.

The Hatter gave a look of pure horror, but he was brought back to reality when Alice gripped him tighter and whimpered. Regaining himself, he continued to lead the Queen to safety, looking back one last time to see the Knave of Hearts make his escape with the Vorpal Sword.

* * *

The escape party only stopped when they reached the Hatter's house. The Queen's horse finally calmed down enough in order for the Hatter to let go of the reins, and knowing that she was all right, he turned his attentions on Alice. She was still clutching him tightly, terrified by what had just happened.

"Alice, it's all right," he told her soothingly. "We're safe now."

"What...what was that thing?" she asked him, looking up, and he could see tears of fear in her eyes.

"That, my dear girl, was the Jabberwocky," he told her in a hoarse voice.

Alice's eyes went wide. That was the Jabberwocky? No wonder no one dared to step forwards and slay it. It looked positively terrifying.

"Where's...where is everyone else?" she then asked, glancing round her.

They were the only ones around, but some of the others must of escaped, surely! It wasn't as if they were all gone...

"I don't know," the Hatter whispered. "It appears that I've dropped my hat. I'll go back and retrieve it. Most likely, I'll meet more survivors on the way."

He turned and walked slowly back the way they had come, hoping and praying that someone else had survived. Alice went to follow, but a gentle hand stopped her; she looked up and met the kind eyes of the White Queen.

"He needs to do this alone," she told the little girl. "And what he will probably find won't be suitable for you to see."

Alice nodded, understanding. She had barely even coped with the attack itself, and she didn't really want to go back there again. She thought the Hatter very brave for going back. There were sounds in the bushes, and Alice and the White Queen turned to see Mallymkun and Thackery hurrying towards them.

"Is everyone all right?" Mallymkun asked, concerned.

Alice just nodded blankly.

"Tarrant has just gone back to fetch his hat, and check if there are any more...survivors," the White Queen explained.

Thackery just twitched and shook nervously. It was clear to see that what had just happened had left him terrified. It was then that Chessur made an appearance, the usual grin gone from his face.

"Is this it?" he asked, glancing round at the small party of survivors.

"So far," Mallymkun told him. "Her Majesty says that Tarrant went back to find anyone else."

"There he is now," Alice spoke up quietly, pointing over to where the Hatter was approaching.

His hat was back on his head again, but his eyes were a very dark colour, and he was looking down at the ground as he moved very slowly towards them. The others didn't have to ask to know that there were no more survivors. He was the last Hightopp Clan member left. Alice noticed how sad he looked, so she ran up and hugged him. At least now, she had a purpose here.

She needed to look after the Hatter and be there for him, for she was all he had left.

* * *

So yeah, a sad chapter, but as you'll all know, this was needed. Please review!


	13. The Shatterky Day

Just a few things which I want to make clear:

One: This is only going to be an Alice/Hatter FRIENDSHIP story! The fact that she's growing up with him kind of makes it more of a sibling relationship rather than a romantic relationship.

Two: To the anonymous reviewer who keeps reviewing under different names, can you please STOP! I'm not going to be writing about any sort of prehistoric animal, besides the dodo in any of my Alice in Wonderland stories. So please stop going on about it.

Onto the chapter!

* * *

The Shatterky Day

No one got any sleep that night. The horrors of the Horunvendush Day filled their sleep with nightmares, of burning trees and screaming children, and the knowledge of knowing that Underland was no longer a happy place. This bothered Alice the most; the once wondrous place she had landed in had now turned into a land filled with despair. It frightened her, and a part of her wanted to return home. But another part of her said that she needed to stay with the Hatter. His entire family had just perished at the mercy of the Jabberwocky, and he had no one else left.

The Hatter himself was doing the worst out of all of them. He was the last Hightopp Clan member left; everyone else was gone. Even Terissa, his little sister, had vanished before his very eyes. He could have done more, he told himself. He had gotten both the White Queen and Alice to safety; he could have helped a lot more people!

Alice...the Hatter's mind drew back to the little girl who had shown up at the Tea Party over a week before. She had landed in Underland, innocent and naïve, only to be told that there was no way back home, and no way of ever seeing her family again. And to top it all off, she had witnessed the destruction of the Hightopp Clan – something which could easily scar a child for life. The Hatter knew that with the Red Queen in power, Underland was too dangerous for her. He was determined to find a way home for her, and if there was none, he would protect her with his life.

Morning finally came, and the survivors of the Horunvendush Day emerged from the Hatter's home where they had all spent the night. Thackery was twitching nervously and uncontrollably, and observing him, the Hatter knew that the events of the day before had changed him. He doubted that the Hare would ever be the same again.

Mallymkun sat upon Alice's shoulder, both gazing down at the ground in sadness and despair. Neither of them knew what to say. The White Queen came out and mounted her horse, trying to put on a strong face for her subjects around her, but the sadness was clearly visible in her dark eyes. Finally, Chessur appeared to join the group, but once the Hatter acknowledged him, his eyes turned red with anger.

"You."

Chessur turned casually to him, but began to shrink away when he saw the look on Hatter's face.

"You _ran out on them_," the Hatter growled, walking towards the cat. "You _ran out on them_ to _save your own skin_, you _slurvish guddler's scuttish pilgar lickering shukem juggling slunking ur-pals bar lom muck egg brimni-!_"

Thackery immediately covered Alice's ears, the White Queen turned away with a gasp, and Mallymkun drew her hat pin.

"HATTER!" she yelled, pointing it at him.

The Hatter stopped abruptly, looking back at the dormouse, his eyes returning to their usual green. Chessur took this chance to disappear again.

"Thank you," the Hatter croaked. "I'm fine."

"Good," Mallymkun said, putting her hat pin away. "Now, me and Thacks are gonna go check the Tulgey Wood for any more survivors. There's bound ta be at least one or two others 'ho made it outta there."

"_Naught for usal_, Mally," the Hatter told her. "I know deep down that I'm the only Hightopp left in Underland. But if you want to check, then go ahead."

Mallymkun just nodded gravely, before hopping up onto Thackery's head as the Hare made his way into the Tulgey Wood. The Hatter turned to the White Queen once they were gone.

"Your Majesty, are you sure there is no other way to send Alice back home?" he asked. "Now with the Red Queen in power, Underland is dangerous. I don't want her getting hurt."

"But then you'll be all alone!" Alice protested. "Everyone's gone, and if I go, you'll be all by yourself. It wouldn't be very nice of me to leave you like this."

The Hatter couldn't help but smile down at her. The ignorance of a child truly was a wonderful thing.

"And I'm afraid that there is not," the White Queen told him. "I put my philosophers on the case the day after you visited the castle. And all they found was what I told you; even though near enough everyone can fall down the rabbit hole, only rabbits can go back up it. The Looking-Glass hasn't been used in hundreds of years, and it opens and closes whenever it pleases, but one can only travel through it from the Otherworld to Underland. Not the other way around."

"So Jabberwocky blood really is the only thing?" the Hatter asked.

The White Queen nodded gravely.

"I'm afraid so," she replied. "But I am not entirely sure why Iracebeth has done this. Surely she cannot mean to take over Underland?"

There was a sudden neigh in the distance, which certainly wasn't the White Queen's horse. The three of them turned to the woods when they heard someone coming.

"Tarrant, take Alice and hide," the White Queen ordered.

"What about you?"

"I shall be fine," she assured him. "Iracebeth is many things, but I doubt that she would have it in her to kill her own sister."

The Hatter went to protest more, but decided against it. She was still his Queen, after all, and who knew what would happen if the Red Queen saw Alice? So he grabbed a hold of Alice and hurried round the back of his house, hiding from view. Alice gripped him tightly and let out a small whimper, making the Hatter pull her closer as he glanced around the corner. The Red Queen entered the clearing in her carriage, being carried by four Red Knights, with the Knave of Hearts riding on horseback by her side. More Red Knights surrounded the White Queen, who remained strong in her elder sister's presence.

"Hello, Iracebeth," she said.

Her sister didn't say anything as she climbed down from her carriage. From his hiding space, the Hatter could see the crown sitting atop of her huge head; it looked small and out of place. All the more evident that it didn't belong on her head.

"Why did you do it, Racie?" the White Queen spoke again.

"Because, Mirana, this is _my_ crown," the Red Queen replied bitterly. "_I_ am the eldest, so this crown rightfully belongs to _me_."

"It belongs to whoever it was passed onto," her sister explained. "Please, Racie. We don't have to fight."

"No, we don't," the Red Queen agreed. "Therefore, I am banishing you to your castle at Marmoreal. You are never to leave, and any inhabitant seen or heard praising you in public shall have their head chopped off."

The White Queen said nothing, but there was a look of acceptance in her eyes. There was nothing she could do about it. Her sister was in charge now. Without another word, she turned her horse and trotted away south, and back to her castle at Marmoreal. Satisfied, the Red Queen climbed back into her carriage, making her way back to Salazen Grum. The Knave glanced round suspiciously, forcing the Hatter to retreat further into the shadows with Alice, before he mounted his horse and galloped away.

Once the soldiers had all gone, the Hatter re-emerged with Alice still gripping him tightly, her face buried into his coat. The Hatter could here her sobs and feel her wet tears on his shirt.

"Maybe McTwisp could shrink you and put you in his pocket?" he suggested. "I don't want you getting hurt down here, lass."

But Alice shook her head as she finally looked up at him, a determined expression shown behind her reddened face.

"No," she disagreed. "I don't know why, but I've got this feeling in my stomach. I think Underland needs me to stay."

* * *

**Please review!**


	14. The Fustilug Day

So here's the next chapter. I hope you all like it!

Oh, and could you all give this other story a read? It's called Alice In Wonderland: The Song Of Tears, and it deserves more attention than it's getting. It's amazing!

* * *

The Fustilug Day

Alice awoke the next morning to the bright sunshine spilling into her room, and for a moment, she wondered if the Horunvendush Day and the Shatterky Day had all just been one bad dream. But this thought was dismissed from her head immediately when she looked outside, and saw all the hat-shaped houses completely abandoned. Not a sound could be heard. Not even the birds were singing.

The young girl let out a sigh. It looked like such a lovely morning, but not even the bright sunshine could take away the horrors of the previous two days. Alice could even still see the smoke drifting up from where the Jabberwocky had attacked them all.

Her attention drew away from this suddenly when she heard a rustle in the bushes. Gazing out her window, Alice spied the bloodhound puppy from before, yapping happily as it hurried past the house and into the Tulgey Wood. Alice bit her lip in worry. She couldn't just leave a small, helpless creature to fend for itself.

"I might as well bring him here with me," she spoke aloud. "It wouldn't be very nice of me to leave him all alone. And I've always wondered what it would be like to have a puppy of my own; I've only ever had Dinah."

So, Alice put on her shoes and left her bedroom, quietly creeping past the Hatter's room so as not to wake him. She arrived downstairs and opened the front door, just in time to see the puppy disappear into the trees completely, yapping as it went. Alice followed, chasing after it as she pushed aside branches and leapt over tree stumps, trying to keep the small puppy in view. She was relieved when it finally came to a halt, sniffing one of the flowers. Alice paused and looked around her.

She had gone quite a long way; all the way to the garden of talking flowers, to be exact. Flowers were chatting amongst each other while flamingos rested on one foot by the water, and hedgehogs scurried around by Alice's feet. She also recognized the strange insects buzzing around her head, and the little green pig grazing upon the lush grass.

Alice avoided another meeting with the flowers, for they looked quite frustrated about something, and walked straight up to the puppy.

"Come here, boy," she cooed, whistling a couple of times whilst clicking her finger. "I'm not going to hurt you."

The puppy just looked up at her with big brown eyes. Then, after recognizing her scent, he yapped happily and threw himself into her open arms. Alice giggled as he licked her face.

"Much easier to play with you when I'm at my proper size," she stated. "What's your name?"

The puppy just yapped again, panting and wagging his tail happily. So Alice just reached out for his collar and read the name on it.

"Bayard," she read. "I think it suits you very much."

Bayard didn't even get a chance to yap in reply. Because suddenly, a large creature came smashing through the bushes a short distance away, and for a scary moment, Alice thought it was the Jabberwocky again. But then she noticed that this creature was different; it was white, covered in hair, and it's mouth was full of large, sharp teeth. It resembled a giant, rabid bulldog, in Alice's opinion.

With a scream, Alice ran as fast as she could, with Bayard whimpering in her arms. All around her other creatures were fleeing for their lives; flamingos, monkeys, birds, pigs, hedgehogs. All were running from the terrifying creature known as the Bandersnatch. And when things couldn't get any worse, Red Knights suddenly appeared, from out of no where, some cutting down the plants and flowers which stood in their way whilst others caught the fleeing animals in nets.

Alice gasped in horror when she looked back over her shoulder, but kept on running with Bayard in her arms to escape. Strangely, the Red Knights didn't seem to notice her.

* * *

The cries and screams of terrified animals caused the Hatter to wake with a jolt. He shot upright, taking in deep breaths, before placing his hat upon his head. It was then that he acknowledged the terrified cried coming from the animals. He leapt out of bed instantly, hurrying towards Alice's room.

"Alice?"

But when he opened the door, he found her bed empty. No...she can't have gone, too! He couldn't bare to lose anyone else! He couldn't! The Hatter charged down the stairs, his eyes pitch black with worry, and he burst out the front door.

"Alice!" he cried.

His call went unanswered, so he tried again.

"ALICE!"

"Hatter!"

The Hatter spun round, just in time to see Alice hurry out of the Tulgey Wood, fear in her eyes and hugging a small bloodhound puppy in her arms. She crashed into him, burying her face deep into his coat as he wrapped his arms tightly around her. Something was definitely wrong.

"Alice, what happened?" he demanded.

"Red Knights!" Alice cried, sobbing and sniffing on her tears. "They were catching all the poor little animals in nets, and chopping down all the plants and flowers! Why are they doing it? It's horrible!"

The cries of fear and pain coming from the animals continued to echo all around them, and the Hatter tightened his grip on the little girl in his arms. This was the last straw. It had gone too far now.

"I think it's time for something to be done."

* * *

OK, in case you were wondering, the Fustilug Day was the day that the Red Queen enslaved the animals in her castle, hence them all being caught by the Red Knights. Sorry that chapter was short, but please review anyway!


	15. The Underland Underground Resistance

Sorry this took so long.

* * *

The Underland Underground Resistance

Alice had never seen such a gathering. Every animal, of all shapes and sizes, were gathered in a large ditch in the Outlands. The Hatter stated that if there was one place the Red Queen's knights never went, it was the Outlands. They would never be found there. Alice held Bayard close to her as she sat next to the Hatter looking around at all the animals gathered. There were pigs, monkeys, frogs, hedgehogs, and many birds. She even spotted another bloodhound puppy, of a lighter shade of brown. Bayard wriggled from her grasp and happily bounded over to the other puppy, and they began to play together.

There were some familiar faces, though, who Alice recognized. The dodo, who Alice learned was called Uilleam. Tweedledum and Tweedledee, Nivens, Thackery, Mallymkun and Absolem. Absolem sat on a mushroom near Alice, smoking his hookah, and the other familiar faces approached the Hatter with looks of sadness upon their faces.

"I'm so sorry, Tarrant," Nivens said to him. "If only I had been there."

"You would not have made a difference, Nivens," the Hatter said gravely.

"It 'appened so sudden, none of us could do anythin'," Mallymkun spoke.

Alice just remained silent. Nivens recognized her, and gave her a questioning look.

"Oh, you escaped, Alice," he exclaimed. "I was wondering what happened to you after the trial."

"I helped her out," the Hatter explained. "Only now she can't go home, since only you can go back up the rabbit hole again."

"I shall be more careful next time," Nivens made a note to himself.

"And I said that I can't go home, even if I could," Alice protested. "It would not be very nice of me to leave you all when things are bad."

"I know," the Hatter said, a slight smile on his face. "Hopefully this meeting might help."

"Only one thing can help now," Absolem spoke up.

"Which ye're not goin' ta tell us, most likely," Mallymkun resorted. "You knew 'bout the Horunvendush Day, yet, ya never warned us, or anything."

"What the Oraculum predicts cannot be changed, and telling others about what it says is dangerous," Absolem explained. "They would try and change it, which would cause all of Underland to fall into ruin."

"So what does it say about the Red Queen?" Uilleam asked.

"She will fall, in time," Absolem replied. "Only, I cannot tell you how, when and why until the time comes. If she finds out, then she will try and stop it."

"So the Red Queen _will_ fall?" the Hatter asked.

"Yes, I just told you that."

"Good. But in the meantime, we need to stop her from enslaving more animals in her castle," the Hatter decided.

He turned his attention to the other animals, who were all bickering and squabbling amongst one another. Nivens sensed he needed them to calm down, so took out his horn and blew into it. The noise echoed throughout the ditch, and the animals quietened down to silence.

"Thank you, Nivens," the Hatter thanked the rabbit, before turning back to the gathered animals. "I'm glad you could all make it."

He began to explain about the Red Queen, and about hos it was wrong of her to take the crown from her sister, banish her, and then enslave the animals in her castle. As he was explaining this, Alice noticed that one familiar face was missing.

"Where's Chessur?" she asked Mallymkun.

"Oh, 'e don't like ta get involved in politics," the little dormouse explained. "But 'e already said tha' he'll 'elp in anyway 'e can. Tarrant don't seem ta think so, but still."

Alice was contempt, so turned back to what the Hatter was saying. He was just going into how she had killed many, which obviously, was his Clan. He trailed off, and Alice could see his eyes go dark and change into that deep red colour she feared. But she was brave. Hesitantly, she stepped forwards and took his hand.

"Mr Hatter?" she spoke to him softly.

This brought him back, and his eyes changed green again as they settled upon Alice.

"Thank you, Alice," he thanked her.

Alice smiled up at him before taking her seat again, and the Hatter continued.

"So, she has killed innocent people, taken the crown from her own sister, banished her own sister, and enslaved the animals in her castle," he said, his Scottish brogue taking over. "And now, she expects us to listen to her? Well, we will not. In secret, we will fight against her. We will help her victims escape. We will pretend our loyalty, and then, when the time comes, we will strike such a blow, she wouldn't know what hit that oversized head of hers."

Alice felt pride swell up inside of her as she listened to the Hatter speak; a similar feeling she felt whenever she listened to her father speak about his plans to expand his trading company East. It was the determination and vision which caused the feeling. And Alice could feel both as she listened, young as she was.

"We will not go down quietly," the Hatter continued. "We will not go along with her game. And we will not, in the history of Underland, name her our Queen. There is only one Queen whom we live under, and that Queen is White. Not Red, but White! Long live the White Queen! Down with the Bloody Red Queen! _Downal wyth Bluddy Begh Hid_!"

"_Downal wyth Bluddy Begh Hid_!" the animals joined in.

"What did he say?" Alice whispered to Mallymkun.

"Down with the Bloody Big Head," she explained. "It's Outlandish."

And so, the Underland Underground Resistance was born. And Alice was a proud member.

* * *

Sorry this is short. Review, please!


	16. AN: Story up for Adoption

I really hate to do this, but it has to be done.

I have no more inspiration to continue this story. I don't know where it's gone, but I just can't bring myself to write any more chapters. But since this story is an original idea and has become popular, I'm not going to delete it. Instead, the story is going up for adoption. So if anyone out there wants to continue it then PM me about it and I'll let you have it. Feel free to use the chapters I've already uploaded, or rewrite them if you wish.

Please be aware that this is a first come, first served basis. And once whoever it is has re-uploaded the story onto their account, this one will be deleted.

Apologies, and I hope you all understand.


End file.
